One of the greatest scandals to riddle a romantic relationship might be the presence of a “sidechick.”

The term remains a guilty synonym for a woman with whom one’s significant other is cheating with, and while a guy could fill the role of the “side-chick,” the boast of having one is or being one is a label that many submissively accept, despite the sentiments of disrespect that come with the unwarranted position.

Those significant others that flaunt their arm candy may provide any number of reasons for the presence of a side-chick, but ultimately, unless both partners consent to a polyamorous or open relationship, your romantic partnership shouldn’t be anything more than a duo.

Now I’m bringing this topic up for several reasons, the first being that this weekend I watched the long anticipated film The OtherWoman. The movie follows three women, a wife (Leslie Mann), a mistress (Cameron Diaz), and essentially, a side-chick (Kate Upton), as they plot their revenge on a miserable cheating scoundrel. The Other Woman had many opportunities to be a cheesy woman-hating film, and yet it was executed tastefully in a way that was hilarious and heartwarming.

I went into the film expecting an adult version of John TuckerMust Die (2006), a screenplay about three girls who catch their boy toy romantically involved with the others, and The OtherWoman absolutely delivered just that – but an adult version. I hadn’t just accounted the stipulations of such a version: every element of a fi lm about doublecrossing women but managed to convey such a storyline sans the cheesiness.

While in the walls of a high school, any “John Tucker” would likely find it extremely difficult to string along three girls at the same time, because even if they belong to different cliques, gossip still runs rampant in the halls. In the adult world though, scheduling various women may prove difficult to taken men. In the case of Mark King (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), the naïve wife, highpowered mistress, and ditzy sidechick are separated by state lines, servicing different women did not seem to be a challenge. Mark lied to all three women, convincing each that she is his one and only. Unearthing his secrets initially caused a great deal of pain amongst the three, as well as a strong friendship bonded by the glue of revenge.

Never allowing the original chick and side chick(s) to meet is something that a person can

swing with vast effort; it happens on college campuses all the time.

Which brings me to my next point: having another relationship behind the back of a significant other is a very real and even relevant to Pace.

Senior criminal justice major Christine Vega does not support the concept of a chick on the side, and her answer which included the three words “I think no” required no more verbal expansion or mental thought.

Other students provided more reasoning behind their mostly negative sentiments.

“I don’t think it’s okay at all,” junior childhood education major Ashley Edwards said. “It’s betraying

someone else’s trust.”

The element of respect seemed to be present for sophomore management major Kristyn Quinton.

“Personally, I would never want to be a side [chick] because it would lower my self esteem to be regarded in such a way.”

The term that has been thrown around so many times already can be seen as demeaning; being in someone’s peripherals instead of head-on, so to speak, can easily make individuals feel insignificant at best.

“Before, I used to have side [chicks] because I didn’t have strong feelings for the girl that I was with” said computer science major Madeline Barrios. “I came to the realization that it’s wrong– you should give your all to the person you’re with or not be with them at all.”

Other students were not so bothered by the topic.

“Well, as a side-chick, I kinda enjoy it, I hate sneaking around, but hopefully that won’t be a problem soon,” said one anonymous student.

Perhaps this is the type of person people in relationships fear.

While some are comfortable with the idea of maintaining a girl, or guy, on the side, the general sentiment seems to be that of disdain.

In a monogamous relationship, a side anything is not ok. If in fact the relationship is open or polyamorous and all parties –S.O included – are made aware of the presence of the lady or man their partner is sleeping with, it shouldn’t be an issue. In such a case, the term side-chick shouldn’t be necessary.

The Other Woman provides insight to the pain that comes with discovering the presence of another person in your otherwise romantic relationship. College is the perfect environment for the unfolding of such events and I strongly encourage men and women alike to pay the money necessary to be walked the motions of such a discovery in TheOther Woman.